An Australia-based refugee advocate says the health of asylum seekers at the Manus Island detention centre in Papua New Guinea is rapidly deteriorating, as protests continue into an eighth day.
Protest at Australian-run asylum seeker detention centre on manus Island, PNG Photo: supplied
Ian Rintoul, of the Refugee Action Coalition, says 734 people remain on hunger strike at the centre, while two others have been treated after they swallowed razor blades in protest.
Mr Rintoul says people are collapsing from dehydration and medical facilities at the detention centre have been overwhelmed.
"They've set a makeshift field medical centre, they've converted a kitchen into a medical centre and yes, they're obviously overwhelmed, people are left lying on the ground outside the tent that they're using. So there's a very dangerous medical situation on Manus, the medical staff had been promised reinforcements last week but no one's arrived."
